28/I. 1922.

G. M.!

I am returning, having read it, Gorev's work 245.

I expected more. A former Bolshevik, who so captivated you, and, according to you, has become a real Bolshevik once again, ought to have provided an impressive, vivid, powerful, popular propaganda, a defense of communism for France, proceeding from its electrification.

But what came out from Gorev is "professorial."

I propose to you for your consideration the following plan:

1) hand it over to typesetting at once, in order to release it soon in any case;

2) propose to Gorev—if you agree—to write still an introduction or an afterword, in which, in an extremely popular manner, visibly, a bit more expansively (prescribe for him for this purpose 3 grams of extract from Larinism: they say it has appeared for sale in Moscow), attack French capitalism and say to French workers and

* V. I. Lenin wrote over the text of the letter on the right: "To Comrade Krzhizhanovsky together with both folders, the green and the red." Ed.

peasants: you could become three times richer in 3-5 years and work no more than 6 hours per day (approximately), if there were Soviet power in France conducting electrification;

3) if in your (or Gorev's) opinion, Gorev will do this poorly or unwillingly, then consider whether one should not commission this work to someone else separately (a short "Ballod" 246 for France);

4) send me as quickly as possible Gorev's article in page proofs (release it as a pamphlet or in some journal—by your choice). I may perhaps write a preface 247.

Greetings! Your Lenin

in the 4th edition of Works

First published in 1950

V. I. Lenin, vol. 35

Printed from the manuscript